Turnabout Strangers and Freaks
by Huntydamus Belmont
Summary: Apollo has a bad morning only to find that it would get worse - a murder in an isolated countryside where no one could even hear you scream. Just another day for the Wright Anything Agency it seems! Apollo/Juniper; Athena/Blackquill, and a few others. First fanfic in 3 years! Read and Review! [Edited for errors, etc]


Turnabout Strangers and Freaks (I know, blatant GTAV title ripoff. Will change the title in due time)  
By Hunty

A/N - It's been 3 years since I've written a fanfic of anything. I used to write a few Castlevania stories, some Metal Gear, and then Mega Man, and Tekken. I had clashed with a few people, had stalker problems, lost my Beta Reader and then got too creeped out by fandoms to ever write anything like that again.

Well here I am, just finishing up Ace Attorney V and back on the saddle. Let's see how well I'll do. There are some Castlevania undertones and references, but only for the sake of folklore/legends. I promise it's not a crossover. I have no Beta Reader, so there will be some mistakes and miswordings.

~Hunty

* * *

**[February 10, 8:00 AM; Apollo Justice's Apartment]**

Apollo twisted and turned until the sunlight pried his eyes open. He then put the pillow over his head. For once he got to sleep well again, and all the time in the world just wasn't enough. He groaned, sat up and murmured, "'Morning, Clay." While he got to the bottom of his murder, there still a few remaining emotions that lingered inside him. Perhaps because he had bottled up his emotions throughout the case.

He finally sat up to find his phone vibrating and blinking. He picked it up to turn off the alarms. A message notification appeared on the screen. He tapped it to find a message from Juniper Woods. He smiled. For some reason hearing from her drifted him to a brief, indescribable high. He tapped the message to find a big block of text.

_No...Juniper!_

His eyes widened as he tried to utter a scream from his chords of steel only for nothing to come out. He unconsciously dropped his phone as the glass shattered before him.

_She did not just... _

"MY PHOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNEEEEEE!" He roared, now realizing he had dropped it. He kneeled to find multiple cracks and a splattered screen from the black liquid crystal leakage from the LCD screen. He could barely see anything except the corner of the phone. It was useless now. He sighed. He grabbed a broom and dustpan, swept up the glass. He then dragged himself to shower with a towel draped over his shoulder. He tossed it on a rack and stepped under steamy, hot water. He had shook his head.

Juniper had confessed her feelings to him AND asked him out.

It was tacky and unethical for a lawyer to engage in a relationship with their client that was beyond professional. At the same time, it had been months since he, Athena and Phoenix had cleared her name twice now. _It shouldn't be so bad now._. Juniper would put up a facade of a strong young woman, but somehow, her shy and weak stature was better appealing to him. He had a thing for quiet, shy girls. He couldn't figure out why. Perhaps because he's put up with enough tough girls at the Wright Anything Agency.

A sudden image of an annoying, sneaky drama seeking snake of a certain editor-in-chief invaded his mind. UGH. If Myriam somehow got a hold of this, her school, and perhaps the rest of town would know and then, _Goodbye Law career_.

_NO. ANYTHING BUT THAT._

What would Athena think? A punch in the face, that's what. He could feel the impact on his face and no one was there to touch him.

An image of Trucy AND Pearl dancing around him, singing, "_Apollo and Juniper sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!_" He would be then surrounded by falling pink and ruby red rose petals along with fluttering, floating translucent bubbles, making their romance fantasies come true. Apollo banged his head against the shower tile. The whole thing would be a nightmare.

He then stepped out, wrapped the towel around his waist. He stepped towards the sink, wiping away the condensation on the mirror and began brushing his teeth vigorously. Clay appeared, grinning and stroking his chin.

"_Awww, 'Pollo's got a girl after him!_" He'd grin and wrap his arm around him. "_You should go with her...and get that nookie!_"

He unconsciously raised his middle finger in jest as Clay's image faded into the steam. That dick - he'd totally tell him that, too. He spat, rinsed, and headed back to his bedroom. As he began to put on his signature shirt, vest and slacks. The text message had burned a hole in his head. What was he going to say to her? He didn't want to be in trouble, but at the same time, he was slowly growing feelings for her too. He couldn't leave her waiting and not respond for too long, or she'd worry and assume that he hated her. It was a going to be a big mess.

What about talking to Phoenix? No, his first girlfriend was a psychotic killer. He more than likely didn't even want to think about women. He already has a hard enough time with Maya. Apollo sighed as he clasped his bracelet shut snugly against his wrist. There's more important things at hand than silly high school drama.

By the time he greased his antennae strands of spiky hair, he headed outside to find his bike with a flat. He swore. He just remember that it had been flat since Clay's murder and never got around to fixing it, he was so wrapped up in it. He would have to take the city bus to the Wright Anything Agency. He glanced at a watch on his other wrist to find that it was just turning nine, he had a little bit of time, still. He began walking to a corner where murmuring sounds of cars passing by, skittering sounds of bicycles and people chit-chatting. It was a cool, but comfortable morning to walk outside.

He stopped at the bus stop sign and began to wait slightly impatiently. The buses ran like garbage in the morning because of the massive passengers that take it to work as well. He had taken a thermos container filled with the coffee Juniper had made for him. He suddenly heard shouts and screams from loud teenage kids also waiting for the bus. They were surrounding someone or something, perhaps a street performer. If Trucy was there, the crowd would be larger. As he began slowly chugging down the warm liquid life, he was suddenly splashed and burned by it. The thermos container had a dented hole in it by a knife thrown at him. Instead of potentially killing him instantly, the blade stuck in the middle of the bus stop sign. He glanced to find that the blade was a decorated butterfly knife.

The shouting turned into silence. The crowd broke away, revealing a young girl, no older than Trucy.

She covered her face with her hands, mortified that she nearly killed someone. She was dark-skinned and wore all black, perhaps a full unitard bodysuit.

"I-I'm **SO** SORRY!" She cried out, running towards him. "Are you alright?! Did I get you somewhere?!"

Apollo just stood silently, dropping his container, not sure if he should strangle her, or let out his frustrations once again with his chords of steel. His vest and slacks ruined, his antennae withered, his skin burning.

"I really wasn't trying to hurt anyone, sir!" She frantically took out tissue and began wiping him down. "I'll buy you another coffee..I'll even wash your clothes...I am SO, SO, SO...-"

"I'm...**FINE**," Apollo bit back, taking the tissues from her. "I'll...be. **FINE**." It took all his energy to step on the bus arriving at the perfect time.

* * *

**[February 10, 9:30 AM; Wright Anything Agency]**

Phoenix Wright walked inside the building from the mailbox by the front door to carry a large pile of mail, mainly fan letters to Trucy. Since the Space station incident, Trucy's fanbase has picked up significantly. Booking requests from other agencies, kids' birthday parties, concert shows, and recently- a request to perform on the television show, "_Good Morning America_". There were more fan letters, requests and bills than there were checks from previous clients. Though he owned the building itself, he still had expenses to take care of, even more so to take care of his daughter. He sighed, laid them out on a clear table and began sorting. Athena, just coming out of the office leaned over to help sort.

It's been two months since her name had been cleared. Though Apollo had apologized for having turned against her, there was still some tension between the two, and there hasn't been much beside small talk between them. Athena was still feeling the hurt and pain that lingered, and Apollo just felt awkward around her. Athena had continued to study, update Widget and help Pearl take phone calls to keep her mind off of things.

Out of all the envelopes in the piles, one particularly stood out. In fact, it stood out like a sore thumb. The envelope had a red seal on the closure, like how it used to be in the medieval times. In the front, the handwriting was in calligraphy. Who even does this anymore? With computers, phones internet, e-mail and social networking, there's no reason for anything like this to exist.

"Hey! That's from my penpal!" A voice jeered before the envelope was snatched from Athena's hands. It was Trucy Wright, happy as ever. "Daddy, this is my penpal from Transylvania I was talking about!"

"Been corresponding with Count Dracula?!" Phoenix wrapped a bed sheet around his shoulder, covering his mouth. "_Ah-ah-AH!_" He then quickly balled up the sheet and tossed it, now crossing his arms, stern-faced. "People are crazy, Trucy. Be careful with who you're corresponding with."

"It'll be fine, Daddy!" Trucy said, before tearing the envelope open. She then read aloud:

"_Dear Trucy, I'm so very happy to receive a letter from you. I hope you don't mind sending them - we don't have computers, phones, or internet here in Transylvania. It is very old fashioned here. I travel out into the city to watch you perform on television. You are so beautiful and talented, I want to someday see you perform in person. I am also a fan of your dad. He is a real hero..._"

"I wouldn't say, '_Hero_'," Phoenix interrupted, scratching his head sheepishly.

"No phones, computers or internet?" Trucy wondered.

"Nope!" Athena said. "In some rural areas there would be no communication to the outside world for miles."

Trucy continued to read: "_We don't have lawyers, prosecutors or courts here. If you get in trouble, that's it. What do you do when you're not proving people innocent and putting the bad ones away? I don't do very much but run a mansion and travel to the city. I am afraid I have to cut this rather short. Hope to hear from you soon. ~Sypha_*****."

Trucy then folded the frail paper and clenched it closely against her chest. She then put it aside and began to help Phoenix and Athena sort the mail.

"CHECK!" She shouted out, flinging an envelope from the pile. "Wait, there's two...three...four..!"

"WOO! We can eat real groceries!" Trucy squealed.

"We're rolling in the dough for once!" Phoenix grinned.

The excitement came to an abrupt stop as the door slammed open, causing everything in the building to briefly shake and tremble. Apollo stepped inside, slouched, soaking wet with coffee, panting hard as if he had been chased down long and hard by Blackquill's bird, Taka.

"I'm fine..." He told himself. "I'm fine..."

* * *

*Sypha; yes, from Castlevania, but a character if she was in the Ace Attorney Universe, when the Belmont folklore would be just a silly superstition.

Anyway, I hope I pulled this off somehow. I'll put Juniper's letter to Apollo in detail next chapter!


End file.
